Aftermath of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami

The economic impact included both immediate problems, with industrial production suspended in many factories, and the longer-term issue of the cost of rebuilding which has been estimated at ¥10 trillion (US$122 billion).

A further serious impact of the tsunami was the critical damage done to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, resulting in severe releases of radioactivity and the prospect of a long-term health and environmental hazard in need of an expensive clean-up.

[12] The ongoing Fukushima crisis may spell the end of nuclear power in Japan, as "citizen opposition grows and local authorities refuse permission to restart reactors that have undergone safety checks".

Local authorities are skeptical that sufficient safety measures have been taken and are reticent to give their permission – now required by law – to bring suspended nuclear reactors back online.

[18] An estimated 4.37 million chickens in northeast Japan died following the earthquake as a result of disruptions in the supply of feed from overseas suppliers.

[22] The earthquake and tsunami have had significant immediate impacts on businesses such as Toyota, Nissan and Honda, which completely suspended auto production until 14 March 2011.

[31][32] Chief economist for Japan at Credit Suisse, Hiromichi Shirakawa, said in a note to clients that the estimated economic loss may be around $171 billion–$183 billion just to the region hit by the quake and tsunami.

After it set up an emergency task force to ensure liquidity in the aftermath of the disaster, governor Masaaki Shirakawa and the bank's board also enlarged a programme to buy government bonds to exchange-traded funds to the tune of 10 trillion yen.

[37] On 15 March, the Topix index fell again marking a two-day plunge not seen since 1987 as Japan's default risk surged after Prime Minister Naoto Kan warned of further leaks from the damaged nuclear power plant.

[38] Residents of Tokyo were reported to have gone on panic shopping sprees as daily necessities were sought after and gasoline was stocked up with the increasing risk of radioactivity releases.

[40] He told NHK Television that about 200 billion yen that was remaining from the budget for the concurrent fiscal year that would end on 31 March would be used to fund the immediate recovery efforts.

[44] On 24 March, an executive of Bank of Japan's Osaka branch said he expected "a big decline in production, [leading to] an adjustment in the economy initially with exports and inventories falling and imports rising... Demand created by reconstruction projects will emerge after that."

[56] In Hong Kong, Financial Secretary John Tsang warned investors to "take extra care" as the earthquake may have a short-term impact on local stock markets.

[59] Since Japan's economy relies heavily on exports, a stronger yen, which makes Japanese goods more expensive for foreign buyers, had the potential to further hinder its economic growth.

[64] Evacuation shelters faced a shortage of potable water, food, blankets and bathroom facilities, as the government arranged these necessities to be delivered to where they were needed from areas of Japan and abroad.

[78] In July 2011, the Japanese government published its Basic Guidelines for Reconstruction in Response to the Great East Japan Earthquake and made a commitment in providing full access to its collected disaster records.

"[81] Some people devastated by the quake began, however, to question the government's effort in providing food, clothing, electricity, heat, and phone service.

[82] Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano later said, "In hindsight, we could have moved a little quicker in assessing the situation and coordinating all that information and provided it faster.

Witnesses reported thieves stealing cash and bank books from smashed houses, looting goods from stores, and siphoning gas from abandoned or damaged vehicles.

The rumors which had spread immediately after the quake of rampant rapes by armed gangs proved to be false, as reports of sexual assaults actually fell 35.7 percent to 81 cases.

The reported scams included exorbitant house and roof repairs, faulty radiation gauges, and water filters touted to remove radioactivity.

The Fukushima incident brought the issue of nuclear power to the fore internationally, causing an anti-nuclear demonstration of 50,000 people in Stuttgart and the cancellation of a pro-nuclear press conference in the United Kingdom.

Social buying sites have launched on-line campaigns in which several million dollars were raised for relief organizations working in Japan.

Twenty-thousand US military personnel, including 19 naval vessels and 120 aircraft, were mobilized to provide assistance or move supplies to the disaster area.

[120] Among several resources offered to help find earthquake survivors and obtain information about people in Japan are: Disaster Message Board Web171 operated by Nippon Telegraph and Telephone,[121][122] the International Committee of the Red Cross,[123] American Red Cross,[124] Google Person Finder,[125] websites of the Australian Embassy,[126] US Department of State,[127] UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office,[128] and the Honshū Quake wiki operated by the CrisisCommons volunteer community.

[132] In addition to the Eagles holding fund-raising events,[133] all 12 NPB teams played charity games between 3 and 4 April to help raise money for earthquake relief.

An opening ceremony attended by the governor of Miyagi Prefecture Yoshihiro Murai and United States Ambassador John Roos was held before the game and Rakuten went on to win.

[140] In April 2011, Japanese Olympic officials stated they were undecided whether to run but said hosting international sports events was important to helping the country rebuild.

The 2011 Asia League Ice Hockey finals between the Tōhoku Free Blades and Anyang Halla were to begin on 11 March but the five games were canceled.

[151][152][153] On 21 September 2012, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced that a large blue plastic storage bin from Fukushima was the first confirmed piece of marine debris that had arrived in waters off Hawaii.